


Shaped Like A Gun

by DeathInAPrettyPinkDress



Category: Peaky Blinders (TV)
Genre: Drama, F/M, Romance, Swearing, and plenty of violence, fun sexy times, it is alfie after all, lots and lots of swearing, of course
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-17
Updated: 2019-03-10
Packaged: 2019-10-30 12:58:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17829017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeathInAPrettyPinkDress/pseuds/DeathInAPrettyPinkDress
Summary: Essie Rosen wanted to stay far away from the crime that occupies Camden Town, and one that her brother is a part of. But after his death and being laid off, Essie finds herself in a desperate position. With no other options, she finds herself working for Alfie Solomons, her brother’s old boss. Her position becomes desperate once again though, as she finds herself falling in love with him. AlfiexOC





	1. Chapter One

Chapter One

Essie Rosen had not been expecting any visitors. Particularly any male visitors. Her landlady, Ms. Hirsch, had strict rules on the women in her boarding house receiving gentleman callers. They were only allowed between seven in the morning and seven in the evening. The men had to be related to the women they were calling on, and they were not allowed to leave the sitting room. It was ten at night and since her elder brother, David had been killed a month prior, there were no men in her life. The closest thing she had to a man in her life was her old boss, Dr. Kennedy, and she had been out of his employ for the past three weeks.

It was a mistake to leave him. Since her brother’s death, she couldn’t afford the flat that the two of them shared, and she had take a room at Ms. Hirsch’s boarding house. She couldn’t stay working for Dr. Kennedy. He would often flirt with her, and that was something that made Essie deeply uncomfortable. His flirting was getting continuously worse and Essie couldn’t take it anymore. And Essie had snapped when he kissed her. She had been tempted to slap him, but she restrained herself, just barely. She handed in her notice and she hadn’t seen him since. She had been looking around for another but it had been hard. Any place that was hiring, wouldn’t hire her, because her bitter old boss wouldn’t give her a reference.

Essie was just about to go to bed. She always saved just a little bit of money, as she always hoped that she would do something else in her life, besides just be a secretary. She would have preferred to open a sketch artist and she had been saving up for new supplies. Now, that money was being used to pay her rent in her new boarding house while she was looking for a new job. Her dreams were put on hold, most likely forever. But Essie couldn’t complain. She wouldn’t complain. She took everything in her stride. She had a roof over her head, and food in her belly, and for now, that was all that mattered. She had more than plenty of others. She had no right to complain. Essie wasn’t one for complaining, very much unlike her brother. Her brother had been a good man, but he complained all the time, always wanting more. And while Essie herself wanted more, she kept her wants to herself, deciding that she had it better than others and she had no right to complain. Just as Essie was going to turn off the lamp and go to bed, she was shocked to hear a knock at her door.

Essie went to open the door, confused as to what it might be. It was ten at night, the doors were locked, and the only people in the house were Ms. Hirsch and the other girls. There were eight in total in the house. Essie guessed it might have been Geraldine. She was often came to Essie to borrow various things, but it was too late for her. She was probably still awake, but there was nothing that she would need now, was there? Essie opened the door and she was shocked to find the disapproving face of Ms. Hirsch. Granted, Ms. Hirsch always looked disapproving, but now, she looked angry.

“Yes, Ms. Hirsch?” Essie asked, beginning to feel a little nervous.

“Would you care to tell me why I have Alfie Solomons in my sitting room at ten at night asking for you?” Ms. Hirsch asked.

For a moment, Essie looked confused. What could she have been talking about? She knew about her brother, how he had been one of the first member of Alfie Solomons gang. Essie had even met the man a few times. It was very brief, and she didn’t think that he had paid her any mind. She didn’t approve of her brother being part of a gang, and she made that clear to him. Her words did nothing and he continued working for Alfie, and Essie just chose to ignore, making a rule for him to never talk about his work inside the house. Any sort of gang-related activity was left at the door. Essie didn’t want to hear about it. She want to pretend that everything that he was doing was legal and his half of the rent was coming from legal businesses.

She couldn’t understand why Alfie Solomons would be here to see her. She never had any sort of relationship with Alfie Solomons, there was absolutely no reason for him to see her. She had never exchanged more than a few words with the man, nothing more than ‘hello’ and ‘goodbye.’ And seeing the look on Ms. Hirsch’s face, made Essie even more nervous. She knew that even if her conversation with Alfie did go well, she would never hear the end of it from Ms. Hirsch, and that wasn’t something that Essie was looking forward to. Essie had heard Ms. Hirsch speak of Alfie Solomons and his gang and she made it clear that she really didn’t think highly of them. She thought that he was an evil heartless man and it was clear that she had a particular dislike towards Essie because of her brother being so closely affiliated with the gang, and that was saying something, as Ms. Hirsch clearly disliked everyone, and she never hid it.

“Er-I don’t know, ma’am,” said Essie, the wheels in her mind were turning trying to think of some reason that Alfie Solomons would want to see her.

“Well, go and see,” said Ms. Hirsch.

Essie said nothing, she only nodded. Ms. Hirsch stepped aside and Essie exited the room. Essie was wearing a peach robe over a sleeveless peach nightgown, both of which fell just below her knees. Unlike the day, when her brown hair was pinned up in a stylish but understated up-do, it was falling in loose curls, some of it tumbling over her shoulders and the sides that she cut to her chin, framing her face. Her gray eyes were wide with curiosity and fear, wondering what a man like Alfie Solomons could want with her. She hadn’t been wearing any shoes or slippers, so her bare feet quietly padded down the stairs making little noise. She stopped as she reached the threshold of the sitting room.

“Mr. Solomons?” Essie asked, her voice small and timid.

Essie did not want to show fear to Alfie Solomons, but she was failing miserably. She couldn’t help it. Alfie was sitting on one of the chairs and it was such a stark contrast. The chair was upholstered with pink fabric and it had a floral pattern. Alfie Solomons was dressed entirely in black, apart from his white shirt. Essie could see a few stains on his clothes, all understandable, considering all of the work Alfie did in his distillery—bakery. Essie scolded herself for thinking of the word distillery. She knew that Alfie had a temper. Everyone knew. The slightest thing could set him off. And she knew confusing ‘bakery’ and ‘distillery’ as well as ‘bread’ and ‘rum’ was something that would set off his temper. She did not want to be on the receiving end of his temper. She had never seen it, but she heard her brother speak of it. Even his descriptions were frightening. Alfie had a cane and he leaned on it as he stood up. Essie could feel herself shrink back as his eyes looked over her. It wasn’t in a lustful was, though, no the way that Dr. Kennedy looked at her. It was more of just getting a good look at her. It made her feel uncomfortable, but it was a different sort of uncomfortable. With Dr. Kennedy, she was afraid he would go too far, the kind of too far when he had kissed her. With Alfie, it was a fear of the unknown. Why he wanted to speak with her. There was no reason, as far as Essie could guess, that he would need to have any association with her. Essie would be lying if she said she didn’t find Alfie Solomons attractive. He certainly was. But he was also intimidating. He wasn’t that tall, but he was broad, and that was intimidating to Essie. He was could certainly knock Essie out in one blow, and Essie did not want to set him off. Would he hit a woman? Essie didn’t know. She had never heard of him hurting a woman. Any time she heard of anything he had done, any bodily harm that had been done, had been done to a man. But when he noticed how frightened she had looked, his face soften the tiniest bit, and seeing that made Essie relax a little bit. 

“Ms. Hirsch said you were asking for me?” Essie continued, her voice shaking just bit.

She was wondering how he got in here. Ms. Hirsch’s rules where meant to be followed, and no exceptions were made. But then again, this was Alfie Solomons. He was always an exception. She was sure that everyone could be bribed with a certain amount of money, even someone with such staunch morals as Ms. Hirsch.

“You don’t have a job, Miss Rosen,” was the first thing he said.

Essie was shocked by his statement for a few reasons. The first, that he knew that she was unemployed, and the second, that he had come to talk to her about that. Was this really the reason that he was here? To talk to her about her employment status?

“Yes, sir,” said Essie, her voice laced with confusion and uncertainty.

“You do now,” said Mr. Solomons. “Be at my bakery at nine tomorrow morning.”

His words shocked her and she didn’t speak or move, a million thoughts running through her head. He began to take his leave walking past her and leaving the room and making his way passed Essie. Essie was frozen in place, her mind still trying to process his words. He just told her she had a job with the only details being that she needed to be at the bakery at nine. What sort of use would she be in a place like that? She didn’t even think he had any women working in his bakery. She certainly wouldn’t be useful as the kind of baker he would need. It wasn’t until Mr. Solomons opened the door, letting the cold night wind in that Essie finally jolted from her daze and looked towards him, and finally able to speak.

“Mr. Solomons?” Essie asked, her voice soft and nervous. “Forgive me, but I’m afraid I don’t exactly understand.”

Mr. Solomons turned around, and looked at her. Essie was relieved that he didn’t look angry. He closed the door and took a few steps towards her. In a few short strides he was directly in front of her and Essie’s eyes widened. Had she said something wrong? Was he going to hurt her because of that?

“I am in need of a secretary,” he said simply. “And you are in need of a job.”

Essie breathed a small sigh of relief, pleased that he didn’t seem angry with her. But she was still completely confused. She didn’t even think she wanted to work for Alfie Solomons. She knew that it was a dangerous line of business and she didn’t think she could be a part of it. She didn’t even want to be a part of it. Her brother was, and now he was gone.

“Why me, sir?” Essie asked, not being able to wrap her head around it.

“Your brother spoke highly of you,” said Alfie.

Essie looked confused. She knew that her brother was one of the first members of Alfie’s gang and had served with him in the war. And she and David had been close. But knowing that he spoke highly of her did make her smile. He had always been so reckless and despite how close they were, it had mostly been her taking care of him and not getting a thank you. Knowing he spoke highly of her warmed her heart.

But, she was still confused. Did that really qualify her to work for Alfie Solomons? Granted, she did have previous work as a secretary, she knew what she was doing. She was clever, an she was well aware of that. She had a good head on her shoulders, she was organized and she had a good head on her shoulders. But she was not a criminal, and she didn’t know if she could work for one.

“I take care of those who work for me, right?” he said. “And their families, if they die in my service.”

He continued as if that explained everything. She had heard about this from her brother. He had a tendency to be vague and expected everyone to know what he meant without elaboration. Her brother knew it, and after sometime, he was able to decipher what Alfie said. Essie didn’t have that sort of practice, though. For as clever as she was, this was something that was incredibly confusing for her.

“Look, you won’t have to do anything illegal,” he said, noting how apprehensive she looked at his offer. “And I’ll pay you double what you was making for that bastard.”

Essie seemed to be contemplating the offer. She was still confused. How did he know about her old job, the bastard that she used to work for, and how much she used to make? She decided not to question it. She was tempted to take this job. Her saved money wouldn’t be able to last for much longer, and as much as she didn’t wish to work for Alfie Solomons, beggars couldn’t be choosers. 

“Alright, Mr. Solomons,” said Essie. “I suppose I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

“Well, that’s fucking great, innit,” said Alfie, giving Essie a wide grin that she hadn’t been expecting, but it did bring a soft smile to her face. 

As he turned and headed out the door, Essie said a quiet, “Goodnight, Mr. Solomons.”

She couldn’t believe it! She had a job and one that paid better than her other one, at that. It wasn’t her ideal job. Most jobs would have been better than working for a gangster, but like she had said, beggars couldn’t be choosers. She hadn’t been able to treat herself to new art supplies for quite some time and with double the pay, she would finally be able to buy some. That would make it all worth it.

Essie couldn’t keep the smile off her face as she turned around and made her way upstairs. But it disappeared when she saw Ms. Hirsch standing at the top of the stairs, waiting for her. She didn’t look pleased at having company so late, especially when that company was Alfie Solomons. He most likely had to bribe her with a hefty sum to be allowed in.

“What did that man want?” Ms. Hirsch asked, sounding annoyed and angry.

Essie couldn’t tell her that he had come to offer her a job. She would be thrown out on the streets if she found out that one of her boarders was working for Alfie Solomons. Now that she would have a steady income again, she could look for a place that didn’t have such strict rules. But she couldn’t do that just yet. She had to keep it hidden until she got her first pay check.

“Er-he just wanted to ask how I was getting on after my brother’s death,” said Essie.

Ms. Hirsch looked at Essie skeptically, but she didn’t say anything. Ms. Hirsch turned and began walking back to her room, and Essie breathed a sigh of relief. The smile that she was wearing as Alfie left returned to her face as she went back to her room. She closed the door and locked it as the reality of what she had done by accepting the position of Alfie Solomons secretary set in. 

She would be lying if she said she wasn’t scared. Despite her brother working as a gangster, or rather ‘baker’ was the correct term in Alfie’s mind as well as her brother’s, Essie wanted to be as far away from that sort of thing as possible. She wasn’t cut out for that sort of thing. She couldn’t shoot a gun. Hell, she didn’t even own one. She didn’t think she would need one though, or so she hoped. She was just a secretary. That’s it.

Being in such a close proximity to Alfie Solomons day in and day out was a little bit nerve-wracking. She had heard about his infamous temper and she was terrified that one day she would be on the receiving end. She wasn’t cut out for this sort of life, she was sure. She wasn’t tough in the way that gangsters were. But she reminded herself that she wasn’t a gangster, she was only a secretary to one.

Essie was the brains of her family, that’s what her mother had told her, while her brother was the brawns. David had once tried to teach her to shoot a gun. She fired one shot, and it scared her off. Even something like that was a little too much for her. But she wouldn’t be needed to fire a gun, or at least she hoped. She would just have to sit at a desk and do what she was told. That was nothing unfamiliar to her.

Essie tried to put her fears behind her as she settled into bed and turned off the light. She had to get to sleep, as she finally had a full day of work ahead of her. As she drifted off to sleep, she found herself looking forward to it. It hadn’t been so long since she had that, but she found that, while she had been looking for a job, she had missed it.


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Despite having the most peaceful night’s sleep she had in weeks, Essie woke up filled with dread.

She had accepted a job for one of the most feared men in London. She woke up questioning the decision. She could pay this months rent, but after that, she wouldn’t be able to. She’d be thrown out onto the streets. At that point, her only other option was becoming a prostitute. She couldn’t do that. She knew her mother would be turning over in her grave Essie resorted to that. She doubted her mother would see taking the same path of her brother as much better, barely a step up.

But she was desperate and beggars couldn’t be choosers.

She wore a navy blouse with small orange, red, green and yellow floral embroidery at the neckline, and chose a navy skirt that fell halfway down her thighs. She also wore a black stockings and black shoes with a small heel. It was a similar style to what she wore when she was working at the doctor’s office. It was simple, professional and it added a small and subtle pop of color to a dreary setting. And from what her brother had told her of Alfie Solomons and his factory, a small and subtle pop of color would be exactly what was needed. She also brought a navy knit cardigan, thinking it might be cold in the bakery.

She looked herself over in the mirror, second guessing her outfit choice. Was this right thing to wear to the bakery. She assumed it was. It was the same sort that she had worn when she worked at the doctor’s office. She’d be doing the same thing essentially. The only difference was the legalities of it all. But she wouldn’t be doing anything illegal, or at least that’s what Alfie had told her she wouldn’t be last night. Whether or not he was honest remained to be seen. She was tempted to change into a black blouse and black skirt, without any hints of color at all. But she decided not to.

She did like to keep up with current fashions, or at least pretend she could afford to. Without a paycheck, she had to forfeit her guilty pleasure of fashion magazines. But she held on to her old ones, just to flip through. She had plenty of old copies of Vogue, Cosmopolitan, and The Delineator. She had to admit, she was eager to buy more copies now that she was going to have a little extra pay for them. 

When she had looked herself over, multiple times, making sure she looked right, overthinking every possible detail, she grabbed her brown coat and black cloche hat and left. She doubted any of the men at the bakery would think twice about what she was wearing, or even knew the first thing about current fashion and she doubted any of them even cared about that sort of thing. But she was still worried, as she was sure that anyone would be going into the workplace of a deadly gangster for the first time, or at all, for that matter. She had decided that it’d be best not to tell Mrs. Hirsch about this job until after her first day.

She had told the other girls who had asked her about where she was going that she was job hunting, the same as she did every day, too afraid of what she would be in store for if she told them that she would be going to work for Alfie Solomons, they’d ask questions, and probably think she was insane for accepting such an offer. They’d put ideas in her head about how he’d kill her if she ever did anything to displease him. Essie didn’t need them to tell her that, those thoughts were already quite prominent in her mind, and she was terrified that she was going to end up dead by the end of the week. She didn’t need those other girls feeding her fears when she was already so terrified.

One of the girls who continued to pester Essie on what Alfie Solomons wanted was Annette. She was a tiny thing, at twenty-one she only one year younger than Essie, and her green eyes always held a sort of mischievous glint in them. She was quite curious as to what Alfie Solomons wanted in Mrs. Hirsch’s house, particularly what he wanted with someone like Essie.

“What was Alfie Solomons doing here last night, Essie?” Annette asked.

“My brother used to work for him,” said Essie. “He died and he wanted to make sure I was getting on all right.”

“Really?” Annette asked. “Never saw him as one to really give a shit about his employees families.”

“Well, apparently he is,” said Essie.

“I hear he’s a bad man,” said Annette, clearly trying to get under Essie’s skin.

“Yes, I’ve heard that, too,” said Essie. She tried to make it clear that she didn’t want this conversation to continue.

“Did he seem very bad when you talked to him?” Annette asked.

“No, Annette,” said Essie, becoming exasperated. “I spoke to him for five minutes.”

“Isn’t that enough?”

“I don’t know, Annette,” Essie snapped.

“Are you afraid?” Annette asked. “That he’ll kill you.

Yes, Essie thought, but she didn’t say that. She just wanted this conversation to end. Annette was starting to get on her last nerve, which was saying something, considering what an even-tempered, patient person Essie normally was. But she was nervous enough today without having Annette interrogate her about Alfie Solomons. Especially filling her mind with horror stories about him.

“I’m going,” said Essie.

“What’s the rush?” Annette asked. “You don’t have a job.”

“I need one,” said Essie. She wasn’t going to tell Annette. Not yet, at least. “And the sooner I set off, the better.”

With that, Essie left, eager to get as far away from Annette as possible. It wasn’t that she disliked her, it was just that she didn’t want her fears to be any greater than they already were. She was not going to have her fears fed into any more. Besides, she didn’t want to be want to be late on her first day, especially was her employer was Alfie Solomons. She was sure that wasn’t the best idea. 

The walk to the bakery wasn’t too long, only about fifteen minutes. But as she got closer, she could feel herself becoming more and more nervous. She would have been a fool not to be nervous. Alfie Solomons was know for his vile temper, and his cruel nature.

The bakery seemed to loom over her as she approached it. She felt like she didn’t belong in a place like this, but she didn’t have much of a choice in the matter. She was desperate and she didn’t have much of a chance at getting another chance anywhere else. She didn’t have any chance at getting a reference from her old boss. She considered it a miracle that Alfie would hire her without any. She didn’t know anyone else who would do such a thing. But she was working for a gang leader, a tough, violent gang leader. Someone who was known for having a temper that could be set off by the smallest thing, and Essie really hoped that she would not be one to set off that notorious temper of his.

Essie would keep to herself while she worked here. She wouldn’t step out of line. She wouldn’t ask questions about the business. She wouldn’t stick her nose where it didn’t belong. She would keep quiet and keep out of the way. She would go to work everyday, she would do what was asked of her, and she would go home.

Essie took a deep breath as she began walking into the bakery. She could clearly see that her arrival was unexpected by those in the bakery. The men had stopped working and turned to her. Some were looking at her with lustful eyes, some where looking at her with curiosity, clearly not used to seeing a women in the bakery.

She was sure women didn’t walk in here everyday. Perhaps a few whores for Alfie, but that was probably it. She clearly wasn’t a whore, and any suspicions that she might have been, were probably confirmed false by the way she was dressed, in such a professional manner, as well as her demeanor, the fact that she could feel herself trying to make herself smaller.

It was clear that she was uncomfortable by the stares she was receiving from the men, both the lustful ones, and the curious ones. She kept trying to make herself smaller, and tried not to make eye contact. As if they wouldn’t exist if she didn’t pay them any attention. She had worked in a factory before, when she was seventeen, just after she finished school, while she was looking for a secretarial position, in an attempt to bring home just a little extra money for her mother and brother. The conditions weren’t the best, and she hated every minute of working there. But this factory wasn’t like the one that she had worked at. It was so much darker here, no natural lighting. Granted, the factory that she worked out was fairly dark as well, but there was at least a little natural light on good days. And she had been making clothes to be shipped off to department stores, and not ‘bread.’ Luckily, she wouldn’t be working on the factory floor.

Essie didn’t exactly know where she was going, she just figured that if she kept walking she would figure out just where exactly she needed to be. Or at least she hoped. Alfie had been as vague as possible when he had given her instructions. He had just told her to come to the factory and that she had s job that paid twice as much as her old one.  
As she walked deeper into the factory, she was becoming more and more nervous. She hadn’t even realized that she could become even more nervous than she already was. But she continued to prove herself wrong with every step she took. She didn’t like looking scared in a place like this, surrounded by so many men who were bigger and stronger, than her short, slender frame.

Essie tried to put her fears into the back of her mind, trying not to focus so much on it, as it clearly wasn’t helping her situation. She worked here, she wasn’t doing anything wrong by being here, she tried telling herself, as a way to help calm her nerves. She didn’t know how long she had walked before she had been stopped by a man, lanky and taller than her, though most people were, with short, dark, curly hair.

“You’re David’s sister, aren’t you?” he asked.

“Yes,” said Essie, holding out her hand. “Esther. Or Essie.”

“Ollie,” the man replied, shaking her hand. “C’mon.”

With that he started walking and nodded for Essie to follow him. Essie did just that. Essie walked a few paces behind him, and her eyes glanced to the side, and she saw some of the men’s gazes shift from lust to curiosity. She quickly moved her gaze directly in front of her, once again trying not to make eye contact with any of the men who were working.  
He stopped sin front of an office door and knocked on it. Essie noticed that there was a desk outside the office with some pens and pencils, blank paper and a typewriter. She assumed that it was the desk where she would be working. There was a grunt from inside the office. Essie assumed that it was Alfie. Ollie opened the door and poked his head in.

“David’s sister is here,” said Ollie.

“Well, send here in,” Essie heard Alfie say in his gruff voice.

Ollie stepped aside and motioned for Essie to enter. Essie walked inside. Alfie was sitting hunched over his desk looking over some paper work. There was a chair across from his and Essie hesitantly sat down. She folded her hands in her lap. She sat there in silence, waiting. After a moment, Alfie looked up, looking her up and down, and Essie held her breath.

Essie resisted the urge to look down at her lap, as she began twiddling her fingers, a nervous habit she had ever since she was a little girl. But she didn’t want to look too cowardly or timid in front of Alfie. A part of her wanted to, just as a some sort of show that she wanted to keep quiet and keep out of the way of everything, but she didn’t. She looked at him. She would be lying if she said he was unattractive. But Doctor Kennedy was attractive too, and that didn’t work out so well. And she was sure that Alfie was far more dangerous in comparison to Alfie Solomons.

“You have experience as a secretary, isn’t that right?” Alfie asked.

“Yes, sir,” said Essie.

“And you, yeah, left your old position?” Alfie asked.

“Yes, sir,” Essie replied.

“Why did you leave?” Alfie asked.

“Er, my employer and I had a conflict of interest, sir,” said Essie. It wasn’t technically a lie. His interest was to take her to bed, while Essie wasn’t interest in that.

“He wanted to fuck you,” Alfie said bluntly.

“Yes, sir,” said Essie after a moment, a little shocked that he knew that. She quickly added, “If this is about references, that’s why he hasn’t given me any. I’m a hard worked. I was the best in my class when I was at school.”

“Don’t worry, Miss Rosen, this ain’t about references,” said Alfie and Essie breathed a sigh of relief. “But if any of my men, yeah, harass you in any way, you let me know, a’right.”

“Yes, sir,” said Essie, a little surprised by the statement. It was the last things she was expecting, but she was happy to hear it.

“I’m a very bad man, Miss Rosen,” said Alfie. “But there are some thing I don’t tolerate. I don’t hurt women. And I don’t tolerate any cunt who does, yeah?”

“Yes, sir,” said Essie. “Thank you, Mr. Solomons.”

“Right,” said Alfie, pulling out a leather bound book that looked like a ledger of some sort. “I hear you’re good at maths, is that right?”

“Yes, Mr. Solomons,” said Essie. 

“Good!” he said, handing her over the book. “I need you to balance this out.”

“Yes, sir,” said Essie, taking the book. “Is it right to assume that the desk outside is mine, Mr. Solomons?”

“Yeah,” he said, resuming his work. “Off you go, pet.”

Essie did as she was told. With the book in her arms, she left the office and went to the desk. She took her coat off and and hung it behind her chair and placed her hat in the corner of her desk, and immediately set to work. She almost thought it was odd that he referred to her as pet. Her old boss called her ‘sweetheart’ and ‘darling’ a lot. It bothered her. It sounded like he was being condescending, like he was talking down to her. But the way Alfie said it, she liked it. Perhaps it was because he didn’t sound condescending when he said it.

Essie immediately set to work, doing as she was told. She didn’t know what she was expecting, but she was pleasantly surprised. She hadn’t expected the books to be perfect, and they weren’t but she had expected them to be worse. Mathematics was always a strong suit of hers. She had always excelled in such that subject. Her mother knew she couldn’t keep her son from working for Alfie’s gang. He had been a troublemaker since he was a little boy. But Essie was smart. She could do more for herself than working in a factory. She could make her way up in the world. She would never be some upper class lady, but she could be a self-made woman. And thus, Essie’s dreams of being an artist, preferably illustrating children’s books, were put on hold, and sketching had become more of a hobby than anything else. And in the past few months, she hadn’t had the time to work on it that she wished she could have. She had long since accepted it was never meant to be.

Essie felt like she was letting her mother down by going to work for a man like Alfie Solomons. She had wanted so much for her daughter, and Essie had taken the exact same path as her brother. Granted, unlike her brother, she wasn’t doing any cuttings or beatings or killings like her brother had done. But she was still working for a gang nonetheless. Essie tried to put it out of her mind. If she was lucky, this would only be a temporary position. If she didn’t know if she could get another job. She wouldn’t get any references from her old boss, and she was probably going to have a stain on her record considering her new boss was a gang leader.

But she was in desperate need of a job and she liked to think that her mother would understand. She was in need of a job and Alfie had one to offer. That was all, and Alfie had assured her that what she would be doing would be legal. She wouldn’t be sent out to go do Alfie’s dirty work, she would be quietly sitting at a desk, keeping the books and whatnot. 

But, Alfie seemed reasonable enough. He had told her that the men weren’t allowed to bother her, and to go straight to him if he did. The pay was well, and the work was nothing she wasn’t used to. Maybe being here wouldn’t be so terrible. But it was only her first day. Working for Doctor Kennedy had been nice enough for a while. And then it got bad. Essie could only hope that this job wouldn’t be the same. But considering her boss, she supposed that was one of the least of her worries. She had a nagging feeling in the back of her mind that it would be, but it was one that she tried to suppress, not wanting to think about that just yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed, and if you did, please leave a review! I would love to know what you think! Chapter three will be here soon.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I’d appreciate it if you would let me know what you think.  
> Also, Essie’s faceclaim is Aisling Loftus.


End file.
